The Vancouver Mural Fest has officially announced its return for 2023, with the 10-day event focussing not only on street art, but also the idea of inclusivity.

This year’s celebration runs from August 4-13, with the City Centre Artist Lodge on Main serving as ground zero for the festivities. Famous as one of Vancouver’s biggest cultural showcases, Vancouver Mural Fest will feature street tours, talks, live performances, karaoke, drag shows, circus performers, and more.

The VMF kicks off August 4 with afternoon mural tours, with Public Disco Pride Special taking place in the evening at the Cobalt and Boxcar on Main.

A major component on the inclusivity front this summer will be the Ricecake Summer Market on August 10 featuring 25 local Asian artisans and food vendors. Overseeing the market is Ricecake, known for its work in the LGBTQ+ Asian community.

“We’re excited to work with VMF because we feel it’s important to celebrate the LGBTQ+ Asian community year-round, not just during Asian Heritage Month,” Ricecake’s Van Dang  said in a VMF release. “We want Vancouver to celebrate diversity and representation while creating a safe space where both the queer community and the Asian community can celebrate the intersectionality of their existence.”

Murals Without Walls—which is committed to knocking down barriers facing professional artists with disabilities—will return for its third year. Look for application details to be available in the coming days at kickstartdisability.ca

“Access, from our perspective, is the most basic condition needed for us to show up to the proverbial table, or in this case, the mural wall,” Kickstart Disability Arts and Culture artistic director Jenna Reid said. “We have an entire arts and cultural movement that has so much to offer, both within the gallery and in public art spaces like what the Vancouver Mural Festival offers. Murals Without Walls endeavours to move beyond access by inviting audiences in to witness the brilliance that exists within the field of disability arts and culture, rather than simply including mad, deaf, and disabled artists into the formal art world.”

First launched in 2016, the VMF has seen over 400 murals created in Vancouver over the years.

For more information on the Vancouver Mural Fest, go here.